Android geeks around the world sit poised to watch in unison as Google and Samsung stream an event live from Hong Kong in just a few hours. The expectation from the crowd is that Google will unveil the latest version of the Android operating system, the phone that will spearhead that OS, and maybe a few other goodies.

Like most technology nowadays, most of the details about the phone, dubbed the Galaxy Nexus, have surfaced. These bits and pieces allow us to paint a pretty clear picture of what to expect from Google and Samsung.

Galaxy Nexii

First things first, we are not looking at a single phone. The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is actually five different model numbers. GT-I9250, GT-I9250T, GT-I9250M, SC-04D, and SCH-I515.

This gaggle of Google-powered Android phones will all be running Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich. Externally, we know that all of these phones will be identical in size: 136.0mm × 68.0mm × 8.8mm at the ends while being 11.5mm at its thickest point. They will all have the dual core Omap4460 processor clocked at 1.2GHz, and the 135 gram phones will come with either 16 or 32 GB or storage, 1GB of RAM, Bluetooth 3.0, and NFC. The 5MP rear facing camera will be able to record 1080p with a 1.3MP front facing camera included as well. The 4.65″ screen will have a 720×1080 resolution powered by Samsung’s Super AMOLED HD technology.

Looking at just the numbers, the camera seems a little underwhelming, but since we know nothing about the underlying sensor, we’ll wait and see how nice it actually performs. Otherwise, this is in every way an extremely powerful phone capable of bringing Android 4.0 to the world in a big way.

As for the different models, we know that the SCH-I515 will be the Verizon Wireless variant, packing an LTE and EVDO radio on the inside. Sources suggest the GT-I9250 will go to AT&T, while the GT-I9250T will likely go to T-Mobile. There’s not been any confirmation about the GT-I9250M or the SC-04D, but it seems like a Sprint version and an international version would be all that’s needed to tie this release up in a nice global package.

Performance

This wave of phones is not even out yet, and benchmarks have started showing up. The OpenGL benchmarking test GLBenchmark has recorded a Galaxy Nexus attempting to take the test to see how well the device performed.

Now, the screenshot of the test shows nothing about when it was taken, what stage in development the phone was at, or even if GLBenchmark is an accurate tell of performance in Android 4.0. But the results are low compared to many of the current generation Android devices. Time will tell whether or not the device is able to keep up with the rest of the Android devices out there.

Android 4.0

While we’ve speculated a couple of times as to what the next version of Android will bring to the table, especially with the video leak of Android 4.0 recently, a feature we were not aware of until now was the ability to take screenshots from the device. This feature, which has been sorely missed on Android devices since the beginning, is a welcome addition to the Android ecosystem.

Apparently, you just hold down the power button and the volume down button, and the screenshot will be saved to your gallery. This feature alone is often the reason many Android users will root their phones, giving them the ability to take a screenshot through a third party app.

Final Thoughts

This wave of phones will bring about the next version of Android. As it stands right now, Samsung is the only manufacturer who has started to follow the Nexus way of doing things. Most Android phones still come with removable storage, and next to no Android phones come with the NFC chip required for Google Wallet.

This line of phones is not an absolute standard, nor its it an influence point for any of the manufacturers at the moment. Now that it seems like the Galaxy Nexus will be made available to a much larger group of customers, it’s possible that the other OEM’s will feel the need to offer similar services and solutions.

For now, the Galaxy Nexus seems like the perfect phone for the user who wants the pure Google experience, and is interested in trying out the latest and greatest in Android. Whether or not it will “change the game” has yet to be seen.